Author Note: The next two chapters are based on Episode 20 and 21. Please review!

~CWA

Chapter 10:

Third Person:

She wasn't going to freak out. No, her medication prevented her from freaking out. Her breathing techniques kept her from freaking out. So why was she was about to freak out when she voted for Red Riding Hood for the school play? Maybe it would be better if so many people weren't glaring at her since she was leading vote- the one that ended the three way tie between Sleeping Beauty, Red Riding Hood and Alice in Wonderland. Honestly, she did it for herself. If it was Sleeping Beauty, she would be upset because she hated that story. To her, it didn't make sense for a magic spell to be broken by a true love's first kiss- it was almost as bad as 'love at first sight.' Alice in Wonderland seemed a bit too much like an acid trip. Red Riding Hood at least was a cute story- to her- and she would likely get the part of a tree or a rock so that was nice.

She shifted under the gazes and only calmed down when she felt a warm hand on top of hers. She jumped slightly, but then calmly relaxed when she realized it was only Kentin. It had been only a week since she had spoken to her parents about her love life, a week since that experience at lunch. Yet she felt that their romantic relationship didn't change at all. On a brighter note, their friendship was defiantly stronger and she considered Kentin a best friend. Though his hand on hers made her stomach flutter.

Kentin looked over to Miki, noticing that she was uncomfortable. He ignored the butterflies as he placed his hand on top of hers. He wondered if he would ever get any farther with her.

"You okay," he whispered.

"No," she whispered back horrified, "W-Why is everyone l-looking at me like t-that?"

Because you are so beautiful, Kentin thought, but instead he just shrugged.

"Look at the bright side, at least it's over."

One by one more people left the gym, leaving the two students behind. She took a few deep breaths and then smiled weakly. Kentin stood up first and held out his hand. She grabbed it and hoisted herself up.

"Thanks," she smiled, "I t-think if I tried to get up m-myself I w-would've fallen down the b-bleachers."

Kentin frowned slightly as she giggled. What she said was true and that was what bothered him. He hated that Miki could be so clumsy sometimes- she always managed to hurt herself.

"You have to be more careful," Kentin chimed as they headed out of the gym.

"Geesh," Miki giggled, "Y-you sound like my p-parents…"

Kentin scratched at his head uncomfortably with a sheepish laugh.

Miki spent the whole night practicing the text. To make it better, she even practiced in front of her aunt and at school, she even practiced with Kentin, Kim, and Violet. They all helped her get over her stuttering enough to perform it rather well. She loved acting and plays- even if she hated being the center of attention. She hoped to just get the part of a tree or a rock- something with minimum speaking lines. She knew she could just act terribly to get such a part, but that felt unfair to her. Father taught her to always do her best so she'll do her best and just pray for a bad part.

She crinkled her brow as she heard some noises near the staircase. She only had less than a minute before auditions would start but-

"BANG!"

She jumped at that noise- it was louder. Taking a few deep breaths, she slowly crept to the staircase. She looked around and didn't see anything. Confused, she got ready to leave when she felt two manicured hands on her back pushing her into the basement. Miki stumbled down the stairs, not even having the courage to scream. She finally got her balance- her eyes wide with fear, she ran back up and desperately tried to open the door. It wasn't opening, but she could hear Amber's laughter.

"Sorry, I heard you were doing good with all your acting and I can't risk any competition," Amber said with a cruel cackle before leaving.

Miki's breathing hitched. She was trapped. It was dark, cold, and lonely. Slowly the walls began to feel as if they were closing in on her. She still couldn't bring herself to scream- her lungs felt too tight, too constricted. She banged on the door desperately as tears welled in her eyes. Her whole body was shaking slightly, but she continued to bang on the door. When no one came to her rescue, she gave up.

"Help," she whispered.

A sense of terror covered her as her body continued to shake. She couldn't bring herself to her senses to do her breathing technique to stop the upending panic attack. Her heart was racing, her chest felt heavy. She held her hands together tightly as they shook, but she couldn't feel her hands at all. It felt like everything was spinning- everything was just a blur. She closed her eyes tightly, but the dizzy feeling stayed.

"Miki," someone's voice said from the other side of the door, "Miki, is that you?"

She couldn't hear them- she was too caught up in her emotions.

"MIKI!"

Kentin kicked down the door easily, just barely missing Miki. She was still curled into a ball, panicking. Kentin wrapped his arms around her,

"Miki, I'm here- I'm here…"

Miki's breathing was still pretty uneven and her eyes were still teary and closed tightly. Kentin moved to get in front of her, kneeling down on his knees. He put his hands on her shoulders,

"Miki," he said firmly, "Miki, look at me."

His voice finally registered to her. She slowly opened her eyes, revealing just how red and puffy they were. He sighed in relief that she was paying attention. He pulled her close to his body,

"Miki, I'm here for you, okay? What happened?"

Miki tried to say something to him, but her stuttering and mumbling was inaudible. Kentin shook his head,

"Nevermind- just come on. Let's get you out of here, alright?"

He stood up and offered a warm smile and a hand. She slowly took his hand and hoisted herself up. He wrapped an around her shoulders to help steady herself as they exited the basement to head to the gym. By the time they got there, Miki was much calmer. She had gotten her breath and calmed down enough to walk on her own. Miki bit her lip. She still needed to audition. She promised her father to do her best and she needed to live up to that promise- even if she was still shaken up.

"Ah, you are just in time," Mr. Borris announced, "We are just about to audition!"

Miki nodded and took a seat beside Kentin on the bleachers. He put a hand over hers.

"You doing okay," he asked.

"Yeah," she whispered back, "I'm fine…T-Thanks…"